Northwest Nazarene University will again welcome more than 1,300 Treasure Valley students to campus Mon.-Fri., Jan. 25 – 29, for the annual Science Extravaganza. Idaho National Laboratory sponsors the event that has been held at NNU for over a decade.
Among a host of science activities, area schoolchildren will fire off catapults, dissect brains, see and touch live animals. These unique learning experiences allow students to learn about important science concepts while connecting with local scientists and NNU science students. In a time when funds are limited, teachers have a great opportunity to expose their students to exciting hands-on activities.

“We always look forward to hosting this event,” says Dr. John Cossel, Jr., NNU biology professor. “Visiting school children are excited by the hands-on activities and look up to our students as science role models. The Science Extravaganza allows us to showcase our students’ research.”

This year, the NNU students who were involved with researching frogs in Costa Rica will share their findings and let the visiting children see live frogs that occur in the tropics.

Melinda Hamilton, INL’s director of education programs, states, “INL appreciates our long-running partnership with NNU to provide this interactive, inquiry-based experience for Idaho students. Increasing science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) instruction helps encourage young people to pursue careers as the scientists, engineers and innovators we need to meet the challenges of the future.”

Although the Science Extravaganza is sponsored by INL and hosted by NNU, the event requires the collaborative efforts of local partners such as Micron, Deer Flat Wildlife Refuge, Boise Watershed, Peregrine Fund, NASA, NOAA, Mountain View High School physics students and their teacher Chris Stoker, and others. Dr. Cossel adds, “We all work together to present activities designed to excite students about learning through exploration and discovery.”

For additional information on the Science Extravaganza, inquires may be directed to Dr. Cossel at jocossel@nnu.edu or 467-8893; Hollie Lindner at hmlindner@nnu.edu or 467-8531.